ABSTRACT
Barton explains that the reasons for accountability being important in the public sector arise from the nature and role of democratic governments: Governments have sovereign powers over policy formulation and implementation. The Collaborative Africa Budget Reform Initiative (CABRI) have done some research on this amongst African governments. The lack of a profit motive in most PBEs inevitably changes the emphasis of accountability: financial data is important but being accountable for performance in terms of service delivery and equity, etc. is important too. The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board (IPSASB) develops and publishes International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) specifically for use by governments and other PBEs. The UK's Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government is a vocal supporter of the increase in transparency, hoping that this form of accountability would reduce waste and excess. PBEs generally are focused on expenditure rather than income whereas a private sector organization would focus on its income.
